Vail Valley native bowls perfect 300 game

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EAGLE — Chris Funk recently rolled perfect game during men’s league play at The Back Bowl in Eagle. Funk, a regular in The Back Bowl’s men’s league, rolled 300 for a perfect game, only the third in league play since The Back Bowl opened almost 10 years ago.

Among the many accolades he will receive from fellow bowlers and family, Funk, 32, will be awarded a “Locker for Life” by The Back Bowl and a “300 ring” from the United States Bowling Congress.

When asked about how it felt, Funk said that it wasn’t until very late in the game that he knew he had a shot at the rare feat.

“It was amazing. Everything I rolled felt great and natural, but in the ninth frame I threw a really off-line ball, but everything still went down,” said Funk. “After that, I realized that I was in a groove and the rest just came to me.”

Funk first started bowling as a kid with his grandfather, who actually bowled for an Air Force team when stationed in Texas. But, it wasn’t until years later that he rediscovered it by joining the men’s league at The Back Bowl right after it opened in Eagle.

Born and raised right here in Vail, Funk’s dad Jim, was well known as the Valley’s pyrotechnician, choreographing most of the area’s fireworks displays. Now, Chris, an IT consultant for Mitchell and Co., by day has stepped in to take control of the family tradition, making a different kind of fireworks on the bowling lanes as well as in the skies over the Vail Valley.

The Back Bowl is located at 50 Chambers Ave., in Eagle. For more information on bowling, leagues, hours, dining, and events call 970-328-2695 or go to www.thebackbowl.com.